


(Un) Make a Wish

by viyeolent (Doxophobia)



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - MAMA (Music Video), Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Awkward Romance, Clingy Jongin, Cute, Fluff, M/M, Romance, Romantic Comedy, Superpowers, clingy chanyeol, past!baekyeon, sort of funny
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-01-04
Updated: 2015-05-18
Packaged: 2018-03-05 08:27:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,213
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3112967
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Doxophobia/pseuds/viyeolent
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After having his heart broken by his now ex-girlfriend, on top of being ignored by his best friend, Byun Baekhyun makes a wish. He just doesn't expect the answer to fall out of the sky in the form of fire-breathing Park Chanyeol.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Chanbaek-focused, with lots of Kaisoo sprinkles in the future. Don't let the baekyeon tag scare you away! Also, un-beta'd and based very loosely on the MAMA!verse. (Should be OT12, but we'll see how it goes.)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Baekhyun makes a wish while he's out buying kimchi. Sort of.

“I’m not hungry,” Byun Baekhyun hisses when his older brother knocks for the fifth time. He actually _is_ hungry, but he knows Beom is right outside his door with an expression that says nothing less than ‘ _oh my poor little brother_ ’.

 

He isn’t in the mood for pity. He isn’t in the mood for anything, not when he’s miserable and especially not when his bed is doing a better job at comforting him than his best friend, Kyungsoo. He pities himself enough to last his lifetime and what he wants, what he _needs_ , is time for himself. At least, that’s what he continues to tell himself, because the grumbling of his stomach against the hunger strike he’s forcing upon it is getting louder and angrier.

 

He can smell meat from all the way up to his room and _damn it_ if his mom isn’t the best cook in the world. He _has_ to eat dinner soon, but _only_ when Beom shuts up and leaves.

 

“Hyun, it’s I know it’s still fresh in your mind, but believe me when I say it’ll do you good to go out. Especially now,” Beom just… keeps on _talking_ , though. “I mean, not now now since it’ll get dark soon, but… you know.”

 

With seven years between them, he’s sure Beom has had plenty of experiences. If it were any other day, Baekhyun would have soaked in every word, because it’s Beom and Baekhyun loves his hyung.

 

“Hyun, Taeyeon called,” His ears perk up at the name of his girlf— _ex_ -girlfriend. It hasn't even been a week since they've broken up and he already misses her. “She says she is worried about you.”

 

 _That’s not fair_ , he thinks. He’s worried too but he can’t tell her that. The tears start to come as he replays the accursed moment over and over in his head. Why did he agree to break up in the first place?

 

Byun Baekbeom sighs for the third time from his little brother’s doorway. Somewhere between the second and third knock, he realized that Baekhyun’s door wasn’t locked. Baekhyun will later be horrified to discover that his older brother has been watching him cry and cover himself with snot the entire time.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

They had dinner quarter before 6pm. Although the atmosphere with Baekbeom was awkward, dinner had been delicious. His mom made spaghetti, and there was only one person to think about when it came to spaghetti.

 

“How is Kyungsoo doing? He hasn’t come over for a while,” His mom asks after dinner, when it’s just the two of them cleaning up the table and the dishes.

 

“He’s doing well,” Baekhyun says while washing his hands. He’s grateful that she isn’t asking about his reddened eyes. “He’s studying hard for K University so we don’t get to talk much these days.”

 

“It’s a surprise that you aren’t studying together,” His mom comments as she returns the plates to their rightful place, but what she really means to say is _Studying has never stopped you from talking to him before._

 

“Yeah,” He quietly nods. He’s been thinking about a lot of things, but perhaps it’s too much to think that his mom cooked spaghetti just so she could ask about his best friend.

 

It _is_ true that Kyungsoo is focusing on his studies, more so than usual for wanting to snag a full scholarship grant, but it isn't _entirely_ the reason why they haven’t been talking lately. Baekhyun doesn't really know why and Kyungsoo is being too nice by letting him figure it out by himself.

 

“Oh!” His mother exclaims, startling him. “We’re out of kimchi!”

 

He shoots her a look before she smiles at him. It only manages to make her laugh.

 

“Do it for mommy?”

 

His grumbling comes out more like the sound that a puppy makes when it whines. It makes his mom squeal and ruffle his hair. He believes that having turned eighteen has turned him into a man, yet she still pats his head and calls him her little baby.

 

“Of course,” He pouts when his mind comes back to Taeyeon, who used to go with him to karaoke and rarely babied him.

 

He takes the shopping bag his mom holds out to him. Afterwards, he changes into warmer clothes and pulls out a coat from the rack downstairs. He also removes his sandals in favor of rubber shoes. A trip to the grocery wouldn’t take long, it’s relatively near their house after all. It’s freezing outside though. Never having been one for the cold, he remembers to take one of Beom’s extra hot packs.

 

“Be careful okay?” His mom tells him with a smile as she pats his cheek.

 

Baekhyun smiles back, “Okay.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

He believes he isn’t the kind of man (yes, he definitely believes that he _is_ a man now) who cries easily, but when his thoughts trail back to Taeyeon, he finds himself struggling. He walks briskly out of the grocery with a steady pace, no matter how heavy the shopping bag is because of the kimchi. He knows his mom wouldn’t just ignore him this time if he comes back with his face fresh from crying so he does not go home just yet.

 

He decides to stay at the small playground three blocks away from his house. He sits on one of the empty swings and places the kimchi on the one next to him as he fishes his phone from his pocket to call Kyungsoo but ultimately decides against it because he knows Kyungsoo would have talked to him already if Kyungsoo truly wanted to. The feeling of misery washes over him again, and he waits for him to start crying because he’s terribly lonely without anyone to talk to. The tears do not come though. His chest is hurting and there’s a painful lump in his throat, but he doesn’t cry.

 

Maybe he has used up all of it? Is it possible to use up all of one’s tears?

 

“Taeyeon-ssi!” Baekhyun wails like a drunken man. He misses her but he cannot do anything about it. There is no place for him because there is no ‘ _BaekYeon_ ’ anymore and she’s starting over from more than ten thousand miles away. Stupid America and its stupid boys.

 

Baekhyun takes a deep, calming breath. He knows he’s being pathetic, but Kyungsoo isn’t there to point that out to him. He has half the mind to jog to Kyungsoo's house and pour his heart like a broken dam. He is just so, _so_ scared that he might never find someone to love as much as he had loved her.

 

He’s kicking off the ground now, propelling himself on the swing high, higher towards the dark sky. He watches the stars, calls them his dreams, and silently wishes that they don’t die. Watching the sky is how he first notices the quick lines—the yellow swipe of a shooting star against the dark. Taken aback, he stops kicking. The second one gets him off the swing, but it’s the anticipation for the third star that has him shouting at the top of his lungs.

 

“I want to fall in love with someone else!” He shouts when the third shooting star comes, for Taeyeon and the struggle and the fear that comes with moving on.

 

“I wish that it’ll be someone who’ll be afraid of losing me!” He shouts again, this time for Kyungsoo who isn’t there to tell him it’s going to be okay, just as the fourth trails across the sky.

 

He feels overwhelmed, empowered by the shouting he’s doing and drained by all the feelings he’s pouring out. He has never believed in wishes or shooting stars, but right now he really wants something to believe in. Right now, he _needs_ something to believe in, even if it isn’t Taeyeon or Kyungsoo.

 

Baekhyun is smiling when his phone rings in his pocket. He checks it to find Beom’s text, asking him about the kimchi. He finds it funny that Beom worries more about the kimchi than his own brother. He keys in a reply and sends it to Beom. When he finally notices the 8pm on his phone’s clock, he’s surprised. No wonder Beom is asking, they're probably thinking that Baekhyun’s been buying kimchi for two _hours_ now.

 

“Am I a masochist?” He asks to no one in particular, eventually interrogating the kimchi beside him in place of absent company. “Doesn't time go fast when you’re enjoying yourself? Did I enjoy feeling miserable?”

 

He braces himself to pick up the heavy bag of kimchi, but the noise of something huge meeting the ground abruptly invades his ears. He topples over the swing and the bag of kimchi falls on the ground with him. He collides roughly with a metal pole, making him groan as he pulls his back away from it and feels the tears form in the corners of his eyes. It hurts.

 

“What is that?” He heaves, squinting his small eyes in front of him, at the center of the park.

 

He sees smoke slowly making its way up to the blackness above. He casts his eyes downward to examine its source. The world is blurred, but he sees the wild dance of red and orange where the lamp post used to be, like a bird’s wings begging to return to the sky. Whatever it is, it begins to move, making a distinct rough sound as it scrapes against what is left of the gravel.  _Like a match_ , Baekhyun realizes. He sees a spark, just before the dark figure in front of him ignites, and a sudden _surge_ of heat licks him— _intense and merciless_.

 

He howls in pain, and the smell of fire and smoke fills his lungs as soon as he opens his mouth to breathe. His ears are ringing and he cannot comprehend what’s set ablaze in front of his eyes, but the first thing he thinks is that _I don’t want to die._

 

_I don’t want to die._

 

_I don’t want to die._

 

_I don’t want to die._

 

His voice is the loudest it has ever been in his mind but nothing comes out. He feels like he’s floating and drowning at the same time. The noise in his ears turns into something akin to a shrill whistle and the sight of before him—as if he’s watching the world burn down—becomes _so_ vivid that he feels like he has never really opened his eyes before. This—watching the world turn in time's slowest pace and recollecting the distant memories of the past—this must be what it feels like to be dying. 

 

 _I’m scared._ His fingers dig deep into the ground, trying to cling onto what’s left of his senses.  _I don’t want to die this way._

 

Slowly, everything is robbed from his sight—

 

Painfully, he writhes to appease the blaze spreading on his skin—

 

Until—

 

“I’m alive,” Baekhyun _breathes_ for what feels like the first time in his life.

 

He pats himself on his chest, on his shoulders, and on every other part of him that his hands can reach. He isn't even aware that he has had his eyes closed all this time, but what he _is_ aware of is that the pain is gone—as if it was never there to begin with. No burns, no scars, no… _nothing_ , aside from his dirt-covered clothes and the bag of fermented mess lying on the ground.

 

“Of course you are!” An unfamiliar voice cheers, effectively breaking him from his trance and making goosebumps immediately come crawling all over his smooth, uncharred skin when Baekhyun turns around.

 

Standing in the middle of the park is a giant, with red eyes and red hair and _fire_ on his fingertips. The giant laughs again as it approaches, and Baekhyun watches in horror as the flames grow bigger and its feet leave the ground ablaze with each step.

 

“W-what _are_ you?!” Baekhyun means to shout, but it comes out quivering and full of fear. It's  _so_ hard to breathe.

 

" _You_ tell me!" The monster lets out a laugh. The voice distracts him so much that he doesn't think of his bent knees or of his back straight against metal. It makes his knees weak, his cheeks flush—because it's deep and rich and it is suddenly _exactly_ what he wants.

 

He already regrets asking because he knows it’s a bad idea from the way the giant smiles at him. It’s the smile of a child, the epitome of innocence and simplicity. He thinks of running away, but if he hopes of getting away without getting killed then has already let the opportunity go. This _thing_ crouching in front of him is a monster, no matter how intensely his heart skips a beat, no matter how impossibly _human_ this monster appears to be.

 

" _You_ called me here," The monster whispers, leaning dangerously close to him and becoming more and more human in his eyes, and Baekhyun realizes that there is nowhere else to run to now. “What do _you_ want me to be?”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Thank you for reading! I'm terribly out of practice. Not to mention I'm way out of my genre and fandom, so it'd be nice if you leave feedback. Thanks a lot!


	2. Baek and the Giant

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Baekhyun doesn't remember falling asleep, but he does remember the big puppy he wakes up with.

 

 

“Ah..” The clock begins to beep at 8am, and Baekhyun pushes the comforter off to reach it. His eyes are stinging. Well, no surprise there. “Must’ve been a really bad dream.”  
  
  
He rubs his eyes and glances at the clock overhead, flashing a picture of him and Kyungsoo posing with a rather ridiculous standee. It’s the most expressive picture he’s got, with his best friend’s face a grotesque mixture of fan boy glee and self-condemnation. If he were to put it into his own words, Kyungsoo looks adorably tormented.  
  
  
There’s no helping the snicker that escapes him before he shuts the thing off, and surely there will be hell to pay ~~when~~ _if_ the picture gets discovered. What are the chances of Kyungsoo showing up on his door though? So until he does, the picture is Baekhyun’s to keep and laugh at.  
  
  
“Banners! I need to print out banners!” He gasps when he remembers why he set the alarm in the first place. Kyungsoo glowered at him for _days_ when the news of Luhan’s fan meet broke out, all because Kyungsoo wanted to attend but was too much of, well, _Kyungsoo_ to ask. Silly guy rarely speaks up (properly) about _anything_. He swings his legs to jump out of bed, only to hit a big, clothed bump instead.  
  
  
Baekhyun almost jumps out of his skin when the bump lets out a low moan. He doesn’t start to shriek until his comforter begins to move on its own. With a hard kick from his heel, he pushes whatever it is off the edge. It lands on the floor with a satisfying _thud_! He grabs the nearest object within his reach, brandishing it as a makeshift sword. It isn't until realization hits him in the gut that the pillow slowly slithers out of his grasp.  
  
  
He remembers being in the park last night.  
  
  
And he wasn’t _exactly_  alone.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

 _Oh god, I wasn’t dreaming,_ Baekhyun squeaks, only the dread of last night’s memories keeping him from burying his face in his hands. _Oh my god_ , _it followed me home._

 

“Hello,” The creature’s voice bellows, demanding to be heard. The monster rests its chin by his feet, atop the edge of his mattress. It’s grinning at him, with two rows full of teeth instead of the fangs he expected it to have. “Did you sleep well?” 

 

It really _did_ follow him home. It _followed_ him home and he just _shoved_ it off his bed. He _shoved_ it! He just _endangered_ his chances of living first thing in the morning!

 

“W-Why are you here?” Baekhyun gathers ~~more stupidity~~  enough courage to ask, and it’s not just his voice that cracks.

 

“I go wherever you go,” It—whatever _it_ is—replies, its voice coming out again in a low rumble that doesn’t quite suit its face. “Isn’t that what you wanted?”

 

Baekhyun squints at the monster, which seems to be absolutely satisfied with its explanation. “What would _you_ know about what _I_ want?” He squints even harder when he realizes he’s looking at creamy skin and… somerather nice arms. He avoids looking at its bare chest, at the cost of accidentally meeting its gaze.

 

This monster definitely _didn’t_ look like this last night… did it? The monster… _doesn’t_ really look like a monster anymore. Monsters are supposed to be ugly, _not_ handsome, _damn_ it.

 

“That’s what you said last night,” The giant pouts, its irises a dark shade of brown instead of carmine red. Its brows crease when he looks away, seemingly confused. “You told me.”

 

“I _didn’t_ tell you anything!” He wants to scream. Preferably in the creature’s face if he’s guaranteed to live after. _You were busy burning me alive!_ He wails in his head while directing his glare at the empty space between his feet. He has never felt so mocked by his Rilakkuma sheets in his life.

 

“Yes you did!” The creature stands—something inside Baekhyun _dies_ as it effortlessly _looms_ over him—and reaches out.

 

Baekhyun retreats farther back into his bed, successfully avoiding its touch. “Why would I talk to a monster!?”

 

“I’m not a monster,” It argues. “I’m Chanyeol!”

 

 _What kind of monster is named Fruitful Fruit?_ He immediately questions, more to himself than anything. _Oh god I’m going to be killed by a monster who calls itself Fruitful Fruit._

 

He’s scared of it, of course he is, because who wouldn’t be after experiencing what he had last night? More than being scared, however, he _wants_ to make sense of things and it, whatever _it_ is, isn’t helping him at all! Where is the scratching and the biting!? This doesn't make sense and he’s _very_ desperate for answers, but all he remembers is fire on his skin and the terror of being absolutely lucid. He can’t even remember how he got home or how the kimchi fared.

 

 _The kimchi!_ Baekhyun grimaces. _Right. I forgot about the kimchi._

 

“Ya,” The monster pouts again. “Why are you so far away?”

 

“Are you kidding me? _You_ almost _killed_ me last night,” He hisses, growing more irritated than fearful.  _Dumb giant and its dumb nonsense_.

 

“I didn’t!” It _dares_  to deny, making his heart almost stop by how loud its voice is. “I just said hello!”

 

“You don’t say hello by setting people on fire!”

 

“You don’t say hello by calling them a monster either! _”_

 

A gasp escapes him when the creature puts a knee on the mattress and the bed dips again. He grabs a pillow and hurls it, hitting the giant square in its face and sending it tumbling off the edge again. However, the monster is quick to return, visibly unimpressed, “Stop that.”

 

“Not until I’m sure you won’t hurt me,” Baekhyun raises another pillow, but the giant effortlessly catches it. He pales at the smirk that graces its lips.

 

 _This is it_ , he thinks, he’s finally angered it to the point of no return. For a moment, he struggles between pushing it off his bed for a second time and rolling himself out of it. Maybe he can still salvage himself. He decides a second too late, however, and he already feels the giant hop into bed with him. He shuts his eyes and covers his face with his hands, keeping himself from cowering as best as he can.

 

 _Don’t cry._ He roars in his thoughts, even when his back meets the wall and he knows he’s cornered. _Die with pride, at least._

  

He knows how it’s supposed to go. He has watched Attack on Titan before. If he’s lucky enough, it would go for his head first and he wouldn’t feel a thing. He peeks in between the tiny spaces of his icy fingers, because it might just be his luck that this monster really is just a dumb giant. The smiting, however long he waits, simply doesn’t come. He finds that the monster is looming over him again, hands at either side of his head, with a perplexed expression on its eerily human face.

 

“Why do you think I’d hurt you?”

 

Baekhyun purses his lips, trying his best at a glare, “Why wouldn’t you?” He watches the remnants of the giant’s grin wither when the words escape his mouth, its eyes widening as it struggles to piece words together. If there’s even a little satisfaction to be had, somewhere in there, it absolutely refuses to be found.

 

“But I’m—why would—” The monster stutters, utterly shaken. “I’d never hurt you! You’re my—”

 

Before he can make another comment, a knock comes rasping on his door.

 

_“Baekhyun? It’s hyung.”_

 

For the first time, he sees the advantage of being a boy of his size, ducking under the giant’s arm and quickly crawling out of bed. He avoids making contact with the dark gaze, which he knows is stuck on his back, but he’s caught before his feet can even touch the floor.

 

“Where are you going?” The giant worriedly asks, sounding as if he had just tried to dive into twenty feet deep adult pool.

 

“I’m just going to—” Baekhyun begins to explain— _huh, why should I though?—_ but he sees the doorknob twisting and it sends him panicking. Who knows when the monster finally decides that now is the best time to unleash hell? It might simply be biding time. It might be toying with him, or perhaps he never truly woke up from his dream. _Sure_ it isn’t trying to burn down anything that belongs to him _now,_ but he surely  _isn’t_ looking forward to it deciding to breathe fire in the house later.

 

“Let me go!” He tries to pry its arms off his waist, but he only earns himself a low, disapproving groan and an even tighter embrace. “He’ll see you,” He cries, clawing at the giant more and more desperately. “He _can’t_ see you.”

 

When the door opens, Baekbeom struts in prim and proper in his office attire. He takes a long look at Baekhyun, who is still trapped in the giant’s arms, before he takes an unnecessarily long sip from his mug of coffee. “Baekhyun, I’ll be going. If anything urgent comes up, just send me a message,” He reminds while fixing his cuffs. “The weather looks nice. The weatherman said it’d be sunny all day. It’s perfect for a stroll, don’t you think?  You can invite Kyungsoo, too. I haven’t seen him in a while.”

 

“What…?” Baekhyun’s jaw slacks at his hyung’s nonchalance. There’s no fear in Baekbeom, even though the monster is just in front of him and holding his brother— _him,_ Baekhyun—captive. If anything, he can see the stiffness that’s suddenly on his hyung’s shoulders, as if the latter just walked in on something he shouldn’t have.

 

Then his hyung sighs.

 

“It’s just—you’ve been talking to yourself. More than usual,” Baekbeom explains, as if able to read the other’s mind. If he sees the breakdown unfolding on Baekhyun’s face, he gives no indication of it. “As your hyung, I’m just worried.”

 

 _I’m talking to myself?_ The younger Byun mentally screeches in disbelief. _I have a monster in my room and that’s what you’re worried about?!_

 

Baekhyun makes a beeline towards his hyung the moment the hold around his waist loosens enough. The older Byun makes it out of the door before his baby brother can catch him, much less start to interrogate him. If his hyung hadn’t been a former Track captain, maybe Baekhyun’s chances would’ve been better. He almost regrets inheriting his mom’s knack for music instead of his dad’s athleticism. Well, _almost_.

 

Baekbeom shouts “Think about it, okay?” from downstairs while his heavy footsteps resonate through the walls, adding a “Make sure your friend is comfortable!” before the door shuts close.

 

When Baekhyun screams, he _finally_ reaches that stupid high note he’s been practicing over and over for.

 

 

 

* * *

 

 

“There! Done!” Baekhyun stretches his arms out, standing back to admire his handiwork. He turns to the giant who watches him from a couple of feet away and gestures at the division he has made in the middle of his bedroom floor. “You can’t cross that line, you hear me?”

 

He sees the creature’s brows scrunch in confusion, crouching and poking at the line made out of clumsily laid out tape, before staring right back at him again, “Why?”

 

“Because,” He starts, and a dozen replies easily comes to his mind, all involving self-preservation and avoiding human combustion. Why does it even have to ask? Is this a baby giant? Is _he_ supposed to teach it how to terrorize people properly? “I highly value my safety.”

 

“I _told_ you, I’m not going to hurt you,” The other deeply sighs, resting its chin on his palm. “Or is this a trick? Do you, uhm, want me to hurt you?”

 

“Of course not!” Baekhyun grimaces. Why would anyone want to willingly be hurt? Why would he want to be hurt by someone else when he can just check his ex-girlfriend’s SNS? “You say you’re not going to hurt me, but what was _that_ last night? Huh?”

 

“What was what?”

 

“The fire!” Baekhyun exclaims. “ _You_ set _me_ on _fire!"_ Baekbeom’s been talking about how stressed he is, but surely he wasn’t just hallucinating _all_ of last night. He may not have proof etched on his skin, but what does that matter when he has the culprit right in front of him? “ _You_ crashed in the middle of the freaking park, remember?”

 

He _still_  doesn’t know what to feel about that, honestly, or how to even begin digesting what’s happening right now. He went out to buy kimchi, not somehow summon the embodiment of hell-fire.

 

“Fire?” Monster boy cocks its head to the side, contemplating, until something seems to finally click in its pretty human-looking head. Then, it just laughs. It merely  _laughs_ at his torment. “Ah, I wasn’t trying to kill you. You’re still here, aren’t you?”

 

Baekhyun slaps his hands over his eyes. Is this karma? Is this payback for not telling Kyungsoo that he never deleted their picture with Luhan’s standee?

 

“Then what _did_ you do? Claim my soul? _Mark me_?”

 

It hasn’t even been a day and he already feels exhausted. He has used up all his lifetime’s worth of tears, and now he’s experiencing his entire lifetime’s worth of confusion.

 

“Ah,” _It_  smiles, an unnervingly bright smile that just keeps sucking out all the sunshine from his. “I did.”

 

He almost heaves a sigh of relief, until the words dawn on him and hit him like a ton of bricks, “You…you _what?”_

 

“I marked you.”

 

“ _W-Why would you do that?_ ” Baekhyun shrieks. He doesn’t really understand what’s going on, but he’s _apparently_ marked as some creature’s property. He’s got _Property of Fruitful Fruit_ somewhere on his body now. “What even _are_ you? Are you a _dog_?”

 

“I’m Chanyeol, not a ‘dog’.”

 

“ _That’s not the point!”_

 

The giant winces at the shrill sound, raising a brow at the human whose butt has unceremoniously landed flat on the floor. It moves to help him up, but its hands are immediately swatted away. Slightly hurt but far from deterred, it lets out another sigh, “You act like you haven’t heard of EXO before.”

 

“Of course I have,” Baekhyun rolls on his stomach and tries his best to glare at the tall figure looming over him. It’s looking at him as if _he’s_ the one speaking nonsense. “I’ve heard that story many times.”

 

It’s uncommon to find someone who hasn’t heard of the urban legend at least _once_ in his life, especially in the countryside where his family moved from. EXO are always described to possess beautiful appearances, almost otherworldly in the eyes of humans. The most common version of the tale believes them to have originated from the skies, where EXO are said to have formed their close ties with nature so they dislike seeing it destroyed. It's EXO that are thought to punish bad people by sending unexpected storms or floods, so he and his playmates always did their best to be careful around plants and anything green, really. Children are gullible like that.

 

EXO are also said to bring luck and happiness to the humans who earn their favor, so they’re also called ‘wish-makers’. The elders used to tell him that the stars were the wishes EXO granted and that meteor showers were their tears when they grieve. Baekhyun used to beg his grandmother for stories.

 

“Why are you surprised then?” The giant asks, lips curving into a smile.

 

“What about EXO?” He retorts and receives a look of disbelief. He can’t decide whether he’s irked by the conversation or by something more reasonable, like the mere sight of the other’s face.

 

"Isn't that what you call us nowadays?"

 

“EXO is just a story,” Baekhyun replies, staring at the face that holds beauty but is still undoubtedly a man’s.

 

He used to believe in the stories as a little boy. He believed that EXO sent rain for his neighbors’ farms. He believed that EXO visited his grandpa at night to make his grandpa feel better the next morning. He believed in the stories, almost embarrassingly so, until he started to attend school and eventually forgot they even existed.

 

“It’s just a myth,” He insists, repeating it over and over in his head, denying last night’s the vivid flashes of red and orange under hoods of his eyes, because there is just _no way_ that the baby giant is saying what he thinks it’s saying.

 

“What will it take for you to believe me?” The giant gets down on the floor as well and wiggles towards him, blatantly disregarding the human’s protest of not crossing the line. “Will you believe me if I make it rain?”

 

“Please don’t. It’s already cold enough.”

 

“I can make you warm!”

 

The weight of its head on his chest is _feels_ real enough. He pokes the space in between its brows and watches it make a face that is uncannily reminiscent of the emoji he likes to annoy Kyungsoo with. _That_ looks real. _Definitely_ real. He pinches its nose and it instantly chuckles—giggles?—with a nasal voice. Huh, _that_ sounds definitely real, too.

 

“Aren’t EXO supposed to only like special people?” He questions, the fear from earlier long forgotten. He wanted an explanation but he had never thought that he would get something so unbelievable.

 

“Yes! And I already picked the shiniest human.”

 

“Why are you here then?”

 

“Ahh, my shiny human doesn’t understand?” It laments. It waves its hands in dismissal and rolls around, making Baekhyun feel as if it’s trying to knead with Baekhyun as the dough. The human tries to push it off but quickly surrenders when it catches his arm and playfully places a bite on his vulnerable skin.

 

“Liar! I thought you said you weren’t going to hurt me,” Baekhyun whines, pulling his arm away and caressing the bitten area. He squirms under the weight. “And don’t you know how heavy you are? Get off me!”

 

“I'm not _that_ heavy, and I didn’t use my teeth,” The wish-maker retorts, pouting. “Ah seriously, this human doesn’t listen.”

 

“ _I_ don’t listen? _You’re_ the one who crossed the line!”

 

“You didn’t say ‘Chanyeol-ah, please don’t cross the line,’” It— _Chanyeol—_ counters, sounding even more childish by mimicking Baekhyun’s higher pitch.

 

“Okay fine. Chanyeol-ah, _please_ get off me,” Baekhyun humors, and true enough, the other obliges by rolling off of him.

 

EXO, in the stories told to him, are undoubtedly _far_ from the words that Baekhyun would ever describe this giant baby with. He had always imagined EXO to be righteous beings, like wizards or genies. Just something about being the guardians of nature makes him imagine creatures that are wise in appearance, perhaps even old, but absolutely not Chanyeol who’s goofily grinning with his long arms and legs comfortably splayed out on the floor.

 

“You finally called me by my name!” The giant cheers, with a smile so wide and a voice so loud it’s almost embarrassing. “I knew it. It definitely sounds nicer with your voice.”

 

Something in the way the wish-maker just… _says_ it makes Baekhyun feel self-conscious. He has received compliments before, but the last time seems so far ago now with how the past months have developed. Maybe it’s because Chanyeol looks ridiculously happy or maybe because he knows Chanyeol doesn’t have any ulterior motive for praising him, that’s why he can’t help the shy, awkward smile that creeps its way into his features.

 

Baekhyun blames the cold for the fluttering in his chest and hurriedly stands, glancing at his clock before searching for his change of clothes. He avoids meeting Chanyeol’s eyes as he paces around the room, suddenly anxious that the giant will make another comment that will make him feel even smaller than he already does. He busies himself by booting up his computer and rummaging his files for the banners. For once in his life, he feels grateful for silence.

 

“Are you going somewhere?” The giant inquires, with chest warm against Baekhyun’s back as he peers over the human’s shoulder and finds an image of a boy with a flower crown.

 

Baekhyun immediately slithers away and proceeds to print out the banners to be used for later, dodging Chanyeol yet again in search for a manila envelope to place them in. “Luhan’s fan meet,” He answers, slipping the envelope in his messenger bag and leaves it on top of his bed.

 

“Who’s Luhan?”

 

“He’s a singer. My best friend likes him,” Baekhyun heads out of his bedroom after having checked everything he needs. He hears the door open and close shortly before there’s another pair of footsteps to accompany his own. He already knows who it is.

 

“What about you?”

 

He grabs his new bottle of shampoo downstairs before heading back up, “What about me?”

 

“Do you like Luhan?” Chanyeol asks while they climb the stairs.

 

“He’s okay,” Baekhyun answers slowly, realizing that the other has every intention of following him when he’s been trying to avoid him. “I like Kris better though, when he was still into rap.”

 

“Who’s Kris?”

 

He takes a deep breath, coming to a full stop in front of the bathroom. As expected, Chanyeol stops, too. Thinking that the wish-maker just wanted to escort him, he opens the door. However, the giant doesn’t leave and only continues to stay rooted where he currently stands.

 

“Chanyeol,” Baekhyun spins around to face the wish-maker, who stares at him with big brown eyes. “What do you think you’re doing?”

 

“I’m following you.”

 

“But I’m going to take a shower.”

 

Chanyeol cocks his head to the side, blinking his eyes at the human with an expectant expression before nodding. He answers an “Okay” but does not budge.

 

“Chanyeol, why are you doing this?” The human sighs. He likes his showers and he likes taking time. Luhan’s events only happen once in a damn blue moon and Kyungsoo will _kill_ him if he’s late, so he wants to start taking time in the shower _sooner_ rather than later. He’s not doing this to avoid anyone at all. Nope.

 

Without hesitating, the giant replies, “I don’t want you to be stolen by someone else.”

 

“Me?” Baekhyun laughs. Chanyeol should worry more about himself. With that face, he can probably win WYF’s next model search and not even know it. “No one would want to steal _me_ when they see _you_. Besides, everyone will only have eyes for Luhan where I’m going.”

 

Even while sitting, ‘Chanyeol’ is still taller, bigger. It’s not just his height, his eyes and hands are also bigger than his. Almost everything about Chanyeol is eye-catching, especially now that he notices the elfish ears sticking out of his red hair. The longer he stares, the less he thinks he’d be able to deny the myth.

 

“What if they still try? You can’t let them steal you,” Chanyeol insists, with all the seriousness and genuine worry he’s ever seen in anyone. “You _absolutely_ can’t.”

 

Baekhyun cannot find it in himself to laugh a second time, even though he finds the other’s concern ridiculous. He understands how it is to be scared and be brushed off, so instead of forcing the giant back to his room like he originally intended, he pulls him into a hug. He decides that he doesn't need to rush just yet, and that Luhan can wait for just a tiny bit more.

 

“You’re giving me the biggest headache right now, you know?” He smiles, patting the giant’s back in reassurance. In just one day, Chanyeol has been more selfish about him than Kyungsoo and Taeyeon combined, and he really, _really_ appreciates that. “My grandpa never told me you worry a lot.”

 

He lets Chanyeol bury himself into the crook of his neck, lets the wish-maker wrap his bigger arms around him. and finally relax. It feels rather strange, being on the receiving end of an embrace when he’s been giving them out all this time, and Baekhyun can’t quite convince himself to stay afraid of a giant whose presence radiates all the gentle heat of summer and embraces him just as tightly back.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Sorry for the late update, but yay I finally did! Ｏ(≧▽≦)Ｏ Sorry KaiSoo isn't here yet, but rest assured there'll be KaiSoo in this fic! Do leave a comment or critique, I'd really appreciate it!

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! Sorry, that's all for now. Let me know what you think?


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